Creative edge: Secretary for Education & Manpower Prof Arthur Li says the new academic structure, including more liberal arts studies, aims to boost students' skills and widen their horizons.

Secretary for Education & Manpower Prof Arthur Li believes the new academic structure will have Hong Kong parents' support as the move will improve students' competitive edge.

Prof Li said the decision to introduce the new academic structure in September 2009, instead of the originally proposed September 2008, is not a result of compromise. The change aims to ensure that more schools can cope with the reforms smoothly.

Speaking on a radio talk show this morning, Prof Li said during the consultation period, more than 60% of schools said they saw no major problems if the Government were to introduce the new structure in the 2008-09 school year. Only 30% feared that they might encounter problems.

Since the one-year delay will ensure that more than 90% of schools can cope with the new structure easily, the Government has decided to change the introduction date.

Liberal arts studies encourage creativity

Prof Li said liberal studies will help students have multi-perspective viewpoints and enhance their creativity. He said it is not a new subject as there are about 400 teachers teaching liberal arts studies now.

The Government will provide a Teacher Professional Preparation Grant for schools to provide teacher relief for serving teachers to receive professional training and there will be a Web-based resource support platform for teachers' reference.

Prof Li added the introduction of career-oriented studies will allow students to obtain work-related knowledge, no matter if they decide to work or continue studying after graduation.

Turning to university funding, the secretary said the matching-grant scheme should continue this year because the response last year was encouraging.

Teachers' career prospects good

When asked how to attract more people to the teaching profession, Prof Li said there had been no unemployment problems in the profession in the past and teachers' career prospects and starting salary are better than for many other professions.

He urged people who want to dedicate themselves to education to join the profession.